IBM to save energy at Singapore schools

Company’s contribution to the city appreciated by Minister for Education, Heng Swee Keat.

IBM has awarded US$100,000 to the Singapore Green Building Council (SGBC) to equip 20 pilot schools with networks of smart meters.

This will allow schools to track energy consumption using cloud-based dashboard.

IBM's efforts were lauded by Singapore's Minister for Education, Heng Swee Keat, who gave a keynote at the IBM Centennial Celebration Dinner at Capella Singapore on 2 November 2011.

The minister also noted IBM's collaboration with Singapore and the achievements made through the decades since the setup of the IBM Singapore office in 1953 to market and service its data processing equipment.

Singapore's economy and IBM's presence in Singapore has grown since then and these years have seen the company making several strategic investments in this island city including the Smarter Cities Research Collaboratory and a US$38m Asia Pacific Cloud Computing Data Centre.

Future-ready partners

Both IBM and Singapore recognise the importance of being future-ready, according to Swee Keat who noted the inevitability of change in our lives due to technological advances.

He cited the victory of IBM's "Jeopardy"-playing computer, Watson, over a pair of human "Jeopardy" champions in February this year and appreciated the fruitful collaboration between Singapore and IBM in preparing their students for tomorrow.

"IBM has been involved in efforts to make the world a better place and, I am glad to learn, its tradition of giving back to the community is a specific focus of its centennial year," said Swee Keat.

"The synergy that IBM and Singapore have derived from our collaboration in the various fields, from education to community service to the economy is very encouraging. I again congratulate IBM for achieving a hundred years of innovation and leadership in the transformation of technology, business and society. May I wish you continued success, and look forward to many more years of fruitful collaboration between IBM and Singapore."